[Sidestory to Last Summer Before Life] Emily was going to spend the two day's holiday in her little café, waiting hopefully for customers to arrive. One did, and her plans went out the window. Not that she minded.

A
short sidestory to Last Summer Before Life, and written for
Noihseret's birthday. (I know I should have written Kirun/Daniel
fluff, but they didn't cooperate and I didn't have the heart to make
them.) In case somebody that hasn't already read LSBL is reading
this... Well, it's okay, this happens a lot before the actual story.
And when I say a lot I mean a lot – Kirun isn't even born yet!

Emily
sent a kind smile to the cashier and lifted up the bags in which she
had her groceries. She was checking the mental list she had made
earlier to make sure that she had really bought everything needed.
The next two days were holidays and all shops and stores would be
closed, so she couldn't just up and go buy anything she had possibly
forgotten earlier.

She
knew that during the next two days there wouldn't be many customers
in her café. Not that there usually is a crowd, she
thought with a grimace. Of course she had known when she had decided
to start running a café that it wouldn't be easy and there
wouldn't be hordes of customers on the first day. Still, every
evening, it hurt her equally much to realize that the day was drawing
to a close and there had been no customers.

She
felt her arms begin to ache when she was forced to stop to wait for
the traffic lights to change. She thought for a moment to drop the
shopping bags to the ground for awhile, but decided against it. They
would just fall over and then she would have to pick all the
groceries to the plastic bags again. And with her current luck the
lights would have changed again and she would be forced to wait even
longer.

After
the lights finally changed from red to green, she continued walking
back to her café and the little room behind it where she slept
and lived. The Café was located in a good area for business;
many people used the streets near it and the crime rate was low. Plus
the area looked more beautiful than average. And there was some
museums and historical buildings nearby, so it attracted also
tourists.

Seeing
a black-haired man leaning on the door of The Café, Emily
tensed a little. It was obvious that the man was waiting for her. If
I'm lucky he is a customer, she thought, hands shaking a bit.
Something in the man was like a sign with bold letters reading,
'Don't bother me.'

"Hello,
do you mind moving a little? Thank you," Emily managed to say
despite the foreboding feeling in her gut. To her delight, her voice
didn't quiver. The man turned his head to look at her and she
realized that he was Asian.

"My
apologies, milady", the man said, nodding gracefully and
straightening. The man not further blocking the door, she lowered the
shopping bags onto the step leading to it and took the key to open
it. At the corner of her eye, Emily saw the man bend down and pick
her shopping bags up. She turned her head and frowned at him, and was
met with dark somber eyes.

"At
least let me carry your bags, milady", the man argued drily.
Suspecting that she had heard mocking in his voice, Emily gave the
man a long look.

"Would
you like to come in?" she asked politely and held the door open.
The man smiled curtly and stepped in, still carrying the full
shopping bags. "Could you put them on the counter, please?"

"Certainly,
milady," the man replied and now Emily was sure: there was
amusement in that voice, along with a faint accent.

She
gestured the man to take a seat and sat herself on a wicker chair at
one of the tables. The man sat down across her and put his black hat
down on the table.

"Who
are you?" she inquired, smiling in a friendly manner, and carefully
holding an open, sincerely interested expression she had perfected a
long time ago. Be her in her cat form or human form, her owners
always seemed to feel a strong urge to tell her about their lives and
current problems.

The
man cocked his head, and the amusement on his eyes and voice was
clear when he asked, "Who or what am I? Which are you
asking, milady?"

"Your
name was my goal," Emily admitted with a gently chuckle.

The
man shook his head, laughing silently, and remarked, "You are one
of the last with manners, milady."

"My
name," the man spoke again. "Is Kindaiichi Katori, and this,"
the man continued taking off one of his suede gloves and removing
something from his finger to offer it to Emily, "Is what I am."

Emily
looked at the silver ring on her palm. It had a small stone on it, a
tiny fraction of diamond. She had never held such a ring before, but
she knew who wore them. She looked at the man and the question was
clear in her eyes. Are you here to kill me?

"Don't
be afraid, milady, I'm merely on a vacation," the man answered to
the unsaid question. Emily thought that he was probably used to the
reaction. "I showed the ring to you, since I don't desire to remain
here as your burden if you have something against the assassin guild
of Moon."

"No,
I do not," Emily said, raising her brows. She wasn't sure who would
have something against that assassin quild, since it would also mean
having never being allowed to visit the famous bath house they were
running.

She
had been there once, and it had been a true paradise. If only she
could have taken her owner of that time with her... She had pretended
to run away and then be found a couple of days later. Her owner had
chastised her but she had also been happy that her ocicat was safely
back.

"I
heard of your café – You are Miss Emily Ann Grey, aren't
you? – from a shapeshifter a few days ago. I decided to pay you a
visit, milady," the man called Kindaiichi Katori explained. Emily
nodded, though a bit surprised that the man had even heard of her
café in the first place. It really wasn't a very popular
place. Yet, Emily reminded herself firmly.

"That's
very nice of you. I'm sorry you had to wait," she replied politely.
"Was there a special reason for your interest?"

"I
just like to know many people. It comes in handy sometimes," Katori
stated good-humoredly.

"Then
would you mind telling me what you are? You don't seem like a
shapeshifter to me, but you clearly aren't a human either. I can't
guess what you would be."

The
man's smile was almost gentle. Emily looked at him, his long black
hair, dark lively eyes, and a mouth with thin chapped lips. Dark blue
coat, navy blue slacks, black shoes, and that black hat. The man
really seemed to like dark colors and especially blue. Only then
Emily noticed the shoulder bag the man was carrying. Even the bag was
blue, though it was of so dark hue it looked more like black.

"I'm
a vampire," the man informed her. Emily looked at the man
carefully. She had never met a vampire before, although she new a bit
about them. They lived in clans, were slaves to their clan leaders,
always went everywhere in pairs. They were deadly in fight, skillful
healers, capable of magic. And loyal only to their clan.

"Why
are you here alone? Is your pair somewhere near?" she pried, being
careful to sound trustworthy and friendly.

"Like
I said I'm on a vacation. I'm also currently working for Lord Moon,
so – as I'm not officially part of any clan – I'm not paired up
with anybody," Katori explained. "Have you run this café
for a long time, Miss Emily?"

"No,
just for a few moths. I'm quite new in the business and a bit too
clumsy, I fear," Emily told him. The vampire shook his head saying
something polite about her charm, skills, and manners.

"Would
you like me to order something? I don't wish to waste your time
without giving your something in return," Katori asked suddenly.

"I'm
sorry, I don't have any blood here," Emily mumbled, lowering her
gaze.

"No,
don't be! I prefer to drink my blood fresh anyway."

Emily
smiled sweetly at Katori. "You don't need to answer, but where are
you from? I can tell that you aren't from this continent, but..."

"That's
actually trickier question than you know. My body is from Japan which
is a country consisting of islands in the farthest edge of east. My
mind, soul, whatever you want to call it... the rational mind and
spirit inside this body is from Fereil'Adilon, the elven empire of
the world of Rudia."

"That's
unusual," Emily mentioned, trying not to sound accusing or
unbelieving. To say it was unusual was a vast understatement, for all
she knew it was impossible. "How did it happen?"

"I
was a young elven wizard who thought it was a clever idea to break
the wall between these two worlds. The hole in that invisible wall
sucked me in and closed itself behind me, leaving me trapped and
fatally injured in this world, in a small island that nowadays
belongs to Japan. I would have died if I hadn't possessed the first
dead body of somebody who died of some disease or other. I cured the
body, and I have been using it since then."

"I
am not sure whether I should offer my condolences or tell you to go
away and never come back," Emily murmured, shaking her head at the
story. Sure, it was unbelievable, but what would the vampire gain by
telling such lies?

"Please
do neither. I have already gotten used to this," the vampire
replied quietly and then added with a dry smile, "Though I admit it
was first quite... challenging to get used to a completely
different culture and language. And people pointing out that I died
two days ago."

Emily
had intended to say she was sorry to hear that, but instead she found
herself laughing. The whole story was impossible, to possess a corpse
while still being alive was impossible, to become an assassin and a
vampire to boot was impossible. So she just had to ask, "And how
did you become a vampire? Or was that body you possessed a
vampire's?"

Katori
smiled wickedly. "No, it wasn't. I just caught the attention of the
wrong lady. And woke up as a vampire. She was a nice master though,
even if she got really snarky whenever I beat her in chess."

"You
are one of a kind, are you not, Mister Katori?" Emily asked
rhetorically, still chuckling.

"Well,
I admit my history is unique. And please, Katori is my first name –
none of that mister-master-oh-my-lord rubbish."

"If
it's all the same to you", Emily nearly giggled. She gulped,
feeling quilty for her unusual mirth. Now is definitely a good
time to make a fool of myself, she thought cynically.

"It
most definitely is, trust me," Katori chuckled. Emily glanced at
him and smiled faintly. For a moment she had thought that the vampire
had somehow read her thoughts.

Emily
felt her eyes narrowing, and she held the vampire's lightly surprised
gaze steady. She half-stood up to grab the man's chin. "None of
that anymore, Katori," she demanded, a smirk ghosting on her lips.
"Or else..."

"My
ap-- I didn't say anything, I swear," he laughed, although Emily
could see an attentive spark in his eyes.

"I
have to go put my groceries into the fridge, but would you like to
come back tomorrow afternoon? The café will hardly have any
customers during a day that's generally used to go to visit one's
family." Not that it usually has that many customers...

"It
would be my pleasure, Miss Emily," the vampire replied, gently
prying Emily's fingers off of his chin and kissing them chastily
before standing up and taking his hat.

"I'll
be waiting for you," Emily promised. The vampire, one hand on the
doorhandle, turned to look at her and smiled warmly at her before
slipping outside.

----

Nervous
and severely regretting her decision, Emily straightened her plaid
skirt. It reached her ankles and was dark, very dark burgundy with
thin yellowish stripes that formed the plaid patterns. It looked
good on her, many had said, and now more than ever she hoped they had
been sincere in their compliments.

She
was also wearing a tight short-sleeved shirt, whose color was faded
pink that went well with the skirt. She had also brilliant pink high
heel sandal shoes that fastened around the ankle with a large pink
satin ribbon.

She
admitted that she had dressed up, but she hoped it wasn't as obvious
as she feared. It would get really awkward if Katori showed up
dressed in old jeans and faded T-shirt. Though she had a hunch that
everything would look gorgeous on him.

She
glanced at the table she had chosen. There were two plates, two
forks, two everything necessary on it, and two tall white candles she
hadn't lit yet. She had bought a bouquet of flowers to put in the
middle of the table after putting a white tablecloth on it. Wondering
if she should take the candles away after all, she bit her lip. If
he didn't realize that I was asking him out, well, in
on a date... I will be so embarassed!

Emily
nearly jumped up when she heard a knock on the door. For once she was
grateful that there was no window on the door. The vampire couldn't
see her just yet so whatever happened she had a few moments more to
keep her dignity.

Emily
grit her teeth, steeled herself, and slowly opened the sturdy door.

"You
look so very beautiful, Miss Emily," the vampire's deep voice said
in awe. Emily gulped and swallowed, not being able to form a reply.
She didn't want to see what the vampire was wearing.

"Is
it okay if I leave my hat and coat on this table here?" the vampire
asked. Emily nodded without looking at him. She felt him move to
stand behind her and touch her shoulder. "Are you feeling well,
Miss Emily?"

"Yes,"
Emily sighed quietly and turned around asking, "Have I made a fool
of myself, Katori?"

The
vampire was wearing a dark blue suit with a hyacith purple flower on
the buttonhole. Emily sighed in relief. He looked handsome with his
long silky hair braided back.

"Fool?
Miss Emily, let me assure you that it was I who thought that he
wouldn't come out of this evening with anything resembling to
dignity," Katori said faintly. "You have no idea how relieved I
felt when I saw you."

"I
hoped I wasn't that obvious, Miss Emily," Katori chuckled. "You
are more pretty than any goddess I have ever heard of."

"And
now we shall hope that lightning won't strike us down while we are
eating!" Emily exclaimed laughing, and soon the vampire was
laughing, too. Katori's laughter sounds very nice, Emily mused
to herself with a small smile. She had also noticed that the man had
chosen not to wear the silver ring during their dinner.

"Please
sit down. What a great host I am – barely letting my guest in!"
Emily ordered good-humoredly when she realized that they were still
standing near the door. Then her gaze fell on the candles. "Oh
gods! Katori, look elsewhere, quickly!" she shrieked, making sure
her voice sounded terrified and had a healthy dose of panic in it.

Like
she had predicted, the vampire was a gentleman and turned to
seemingly adore the carvings on the doorframe. She tiptoed as quietly
as it was possible on high heels to the table and lit the candles.

"Miss
Emily, is everything well?" came the timid question. Emily glanced
at the vampire and smiled gently. She walked behind him and snaked
her arms around his waist.

"Yes,"
she whispered to his back. "Just pretend you didn't notice that the
candles weren't lit."

"I
was so wholly captivated by your beauty that something as ordinary as
candles never even came to my mind," Katori replied, faking an
overly gallant tone. Emily nodded, knowing that the vampire would
feel it against his back, and then backed away. The vampire followed
her lead by turning around himself with a fluid movement.

She
liked the way the candle light reflected on the vampire's eyes, she
decided. It made them look darker and dimmed the feeling of ancient
mind behind those pools of bark brown. She gave the vampire a warm
smile, knowing fully well that there weren't many inches between
their faces.

"How
sweet are looks that ladies bend, on whom their favours fall,"
Katori murmured, caressing Emily's arm and running his fingers upward
it until his hands rested on her shoulder.

"Dare
I ask?" Emily inquired softly referring to the vampire's latest
line that had sounded more like he was reciting it rather than saying it
spontaneously. She felt the smile on her lips widen.

"Thank
you, Katori. You have eyes that would turn anybody into a blushing
mush, and I don't even want to know how many would be ready to kill
to have hair like yours," Emily complimented, meaning every word.
Leaning closer and whispering, she added, "Even I could be
persuaded to get my hands bloody to be allowed to touch it."

"You
are flattering me, Miss Emily, surely you are just flattering," the
vampire argued politely, although his expression revealed a hint of
both surprise and pleasure.

Emily
grinned, looking the vampire in the eyes meaningfully. "Oh really?
Just mere flattery, is it not? Can this be considered flattery, too?"
she asked before touching the vampire's nose with her lips.

"That
is something I'm not sure whether to consider a gift or a torture,
Miss Emily."

"Shall
we try it again so you can make up your mind?" Emily teased, and
chuckled when she found Katori's left hand on her hip. She kissed his
cheek this time, petting his hair with her hand. "I'll look forward
to untying these silky locks after the dinner," she whispered
before kissing his earlobe and backing away.

"We
are eating here? I will be more than delighted to treat you dinner
anywhere you desire," the vampire murmured, refusing to let his
hand completely fall from her arm.

"Even
the smallest of frowns on your face is punishment severe enough for
me if I know that it's my deeds that have brought the shadow to your
lovely face," the vampire announced, taking her hand and kissing
her knuckles again.

"Will
you then do anything for me, my honorable knight? Even eat food made
by my own hands?" Emily joked, delighted in the mixture of
good-humored mocking and romantic beauty she had found, practically
on her doorstep.

"What
can I say, Miss Emily? One thing and I'm looking down on the food you
made – and that doesn't do. The other thing and I will upset your
sense of humor – and that's not much better a choice. You have
fully cornered me, my precious Miss Emily," the vampire talked,
spreading his arms in a surrendering gesture.

Emily
noted with satisfied nod that the food had kept warm. They had a
polite quarrel over who would take first, and Emily won the argument
by asking innocently if Katori thought she had poisoned the food.
After that her guest didn't have other choice than to take the food
first.

The
next moments were used solely for eating when they both tasted the
food and scrutinized the different flavors on their tongues. Seeing
the merry gleam in her companion's eyes when he raised his gaze from
his plate, Emily shuddered inwardly. She had been right: he nearly
drowned her on overly sappy compliments with a lot of comparing to
various delicious dishes only known in myths.

"Surely
you are exaggerating," Emily laughed, not wincing much when the
vampire compared her cooking to poetry turned solid and extremely tasty. She
knew he did it on purpose and he knew that she knew.

Taking
notice of the nearly full glass in front of the vampire, Emily
interrupted him by inquiring, "Is the wine not to your tastes?"

"It
tastes awful," the vampire mocked, seemingly serious, although
Emily could see the mirth in his eyes. "I was merely waiting for a
suitable moment to discreetly pour it into that flower vase."

"My
my, underestimating me, are you not? I can still see whether the
water is colorless or red!" Emily exclaimed. She felt like clapping
her hands at her companion's antics.

"Then
I clearly am selfish, for I was hoping to offer you something else to
look at."

Emily
smirked and put her hand invitingly on the table. "I could look at
you forever," she said and barely kept from cheering when the
vampire's hand touched hers. "Especially your eyes."

"My
eyes are nothing compared to you, Miss Emily," Katori opposed with
a shake of his head. "Every single detail in you is the synonym for
perfection. Your eyes are like flowers, full of secret plans and yet
so inviting. Your lips are like white pearls found in the strands of
Eternal Flow's Bay. Your neck is like a branch of a young birch tree,
fair and graceful. Your back is li--"

"Please,
that's enough!" Emily pleaded with helpless giggle and doing a
skillful parody of a knight's maiden. "You are making me blush, you
horrible man."

"There
is no such a thing as 'enough' if it's about adoring your beauty,"
Katori winked, squeezing her hand on the table.

Emily
looked at him and he looked back at her. They had already finished
eating. Neither of them was sure who had first moved their hand, but
soon Emily found kisses being trailed across her palm while Katori
found his long braid being swiftly unfastened and delicate fingers
combing through his hair.

Emily
revelled in the silky feeling of the midnight black hair sliding
through her fingers and wondered how long Katori had to brush it to
make it so shiny, or whether it was naturally so. She took a lock of
it in her hand and placed a soft kiss on it. She felt Katori's lips
pressing on her wrist again in a sweet answer.

She
used her left hand to massage his scalp and was rewarded with a
quiet, satisfied sigh that the vampire wasn't able to bite back. She
hoped her right hand would be free to help in massaging, but
reclaiming it from Katori's lips didn't feel like a enjoyable idea at
all.

Continuing
massaging and petting but gently guiding his head in the right angle,
Emily silently stood up. She knew Katori had noticed, she felt it in
the rain of kisses the man was showering her right hand in. She
stepped closer and felt the man's hand on her waist, steadying her,
when she leaned forward to kiss his temple.

He
turned his head and she left a trail of kisses from his temple to his
cheek to his parted lips.

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